Ness
by PSI-Triforce
Summary: HappiNess, SadNess, MadNess, KindNess... Ten one-shots covering the different sides of everyone's favourite boy from Onett.
1. Happiness

As the sun peeked through an old pair of curtains, a young boy stirred under the sheets of his bed. Mumbling slightly, his hand emerged to his bedside table where it searched, half-asleep, for something it needed. Feeling through a yoyo, some loose change, and the handle of a baseball bat, the hand finally found what it was looking for and grabbed a red cap before retreating back under the covers. A few seconds later, the covers shot off as Ness yawned and got out of bed slowly, using his cap to hide his messy black hair.

Deciding to wear something different today, Ness trudged to his wardrobe in his pyjamas and opened it, only to see masses of blue denim shorts and yellow and blue striped shirts, with a few extra backpacks too. Vowing to buy some different clothes, despite knowing he would forget, he pulled on the closest clothes he could find.

After freshening up for a few more minutes in his room, Ness decided to venture outside. Instantly, he was greeted by having to jump back against a wall to avoid getting in the way of Marth, who was trying in vain to catch up with Toon Link for something or other. As Ness risked heading downstairs, he was almost flattened again as Sonic ran past him, desperate to get breakfast. As Ness got off the stairs and headed to the kitchen, he heard swearing coming from above him, and looked up just in time to roll out of the way of Toon Link, who had managed to escape Marth by skipping the stairs and jumping from one floor to another.

Ness entered the kitchen cautiously, but nobody else was there. Opening a cupboard, Ness cringed as he took out a box of 'Smash Cereal'. Strongly regretting letting Master Hand force them to advertise products, Ness did his best to ignore the huge words 'The cereal of heroes' and grimaced even more when he saw the picture of himself pointing at the box, with a speech bubble emerging saying, "They're PSI-Rockin!"

Pouring himself a small bowl, Ness searched for the milk for almost half an hour before he remembered that it was one of the casualties in Kirby and Wario's eating contest. Giving up on the idea of having a healthy breakfast, Ness opened the fridge and took out a handful of candy bars and a bottle of water, before joining the other Smashers in the living room to see if anything interesting was on TV. Hearing something Japanese, Ness peeked in the open door and saw that the remote control was currently being held by Ike. Sighing, Ness decided to train instead of watching television.

Training didn't prove to be any more relaxing that any other activity, as Captain Falcon was already inside the gym, and he was using all the best equipment. The punchbag, the weights, and the treadmill were already in use, and although the Captain sent a friendly greeting in Ness' direction, Ness knew better than to interrupt him. Groaning slightly, Ness exited the gym and decided to try his luck in the garden.

Upon entering the garden, he saw why a few other people had been staying out. The young fighters were having a football/soccer match, whilst some of the bored adults were supervising it. Link and Zelda were leaning against the wall watching, while Peach was doing her best to referee, much to the amusement of Samus. Although Mario and Luigi weren't some of the youngest fighters, they still decided to play, being about as tall as the other players, Lucas, Popo, Nana, Olimar, and Toon Link, who had managed to escape Marth once again.

Popo and Nana were playing excellently, passing it to each other with great ease, while Toon Link was in a huff about being made a defender for the other team. However, an argument started when Lucas had a shot at goal and Olimar missed it, only for the ball to be kept out by Toon Link's boomerang.

"Hey, that's not fair," exclaimed Nana. "You're not allowed to use your boomerang, that's cheating?"

"How?" answered Toon Link, "And may I remind you, if I was a striker, there wouldn't have been any problem here!"

"Calm down you two, it's just a game!"

Ness watched as the argument got more and more heated. Popo and Nana were screaming at Toon Link, while Lucas and Olimar were both nervously staying out of the fight, and Mario and Luigi were trying to split the fight up. Eventually, Peach stepped in to try and stop the disagreement, but she couldn't stop Toon Link from sulkily picking up the ball and angrily kicking it as far as he could to show how angry he was. Ness barely had time to react before the ball flew towards him and hit him in the stomach, winding him.

Ness coughed several times and fell to the ground, hearing nothing but his own wheezes. Eventually, after taking in some deep breaths for a few minutes, Ness looked up, and felt like fainting. Peach, Samus, Zelda, Link, Mario, Luigi, Toon Link, Popo, Nana, Lucas, and Olimar were all crowding around him.

"Are you ok?" asked Peach slowly. Ness tried to reply, but when he opened his mouth, he started coughing again.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" stammered Toon Link nervously as he began to feel guilty for hurting Ness, despite how Ness immediately tried to reply 'It's fine' but had to mouth it and gasp for air instead of speaking normally.

Even though he was beginning to feel better, Ness could see that Peach was panicking, and before he could try and explain that he would feel better soon, Peach had picked him up and started to run to the hospital wing of Smash Mansion. (Ness had always wondered why they called it Smash Mansion, as it always seemed to be much too small) Bursting into the medical wing, Ness caught sight of Dr Mario, who had been allowed to stay in the Mansion to treat others, despite not taking part in the fighting. Before Ness could say anything, Peach placed him on a nearby bed, ran to Dr Mario, and dramatically screamed,

"He's been hit by a football!"

After Dr Mario got Peach to calm down, Ness had time to look around and see the other patients. Marth was there with a twisted ankle (Ness later found out that Marth had unsuccessfully tried to repeat Toon Link's one-storey jump) while Diddy Kong looked like he was suffering from a bad stomach ache. The last bed was occupied by Falco, who had the misfortune of being the victim when the teleporters to and from the arenas were broken, forcing him to spend two whole hours with Wario. Looking back, Ness could see that despite Dr Mario's training, he still couldn't calm down Peach, and he could do nothing as she ran to his side and held him like a baby.

"Don't worry Ness, it'll be alright," she wailed, rocking him back and forth, not realising that he was nowhere near as distressed as she was. Peach had a reputation for treating the younger fighters like her children, but sometimes, she went a tad too far. Eventually, Dr Mario ushered her out of the room, proclaiming that Ness would need his rest, and although Dr Mario only said it to get Peach out of the room, when he turned back, Ness had taken his advice to heart and was already half-asleep. Dr Mario decided it wouldn't be worth it to disturb him.

When Ness woke up, it was already afternoon, and he was the only one still there in the hospital wing. Leaving quickly, he went back through the hallways to the dinner hall, but nobody was there except for Jigglypuff and Meta Knight, and they didn't look like they wanted to be disturbed. Upon further investigation, most of the Smashers were watching a current match of Pokemon Trainer VS Kirby VS Fox, but Ness wanted to do something active. Heading back out into the garden, Ness found only Toon Link, who was absentmindedly kicking the same ball into the same goal over and over again.

"Hey Toon Link, what's up?"

Toon Link jumped a little when he heard Ness' voice, but soon saw that he wasn't angry.

"Nothing much. Sorry 'bout the whole football thing."

"No problem, I like sports…"

There was a long silence as both of the youngsters tried to think of something else to say, until Toon Link spoke up.

"Ness, can I ask you a favour?"

Ness was surprised that an incarnation of the Hero of Time would ask him for anything, but responded positively.

"Sure, what?"

"Could you… teach me how to play baseball?"

3 hours later…

Toon link threw a ball towards Ness, who pulled his arms back, then smashed the ball out of the garden completely. Toon Link was in awe, and Ness was having fun teaching him how to swing, but their study session was quickly interrupted.

"Ness, Toon Link, get back inside, the sun's setting."

Ness let out a loud sigh. Even though he was almost 16 by now, he would always be seen as a child by the other competitors. Shaking hands with Toon Link briefly, Ness tried to think of something else to do, then just gave up and decided to take an early night. After all, tomorrow morning he was in a match against Sonic, and he needed to be ready.

Trudging back up to his room, Ness quickly got changed back into his pyjamas, took one last look at the 'Runaway Five' poster on his ceiling, and climbed into bed as the sun set completely. Despite having a varied day at best, Ness fell asleep with a smile, like he always did. No matter what day he had, he always had one positive thing that made him feel thankful.

Life with the Smashers was never boring.


	2. Sadness

Ness woke up before his alarm clock for once, and happily got out of bed. Looking at the calendar, he let out a nervous chuckle as it confirmed what day it was. On the calendar, in a big red bubble, there was a single number followed by a single word.

'16 today!'

Wondering if any of the other Smashers would remember, Ness got changed in a hurry and ran downstairs. Last year, they'd been a small pile of presents waiting for him, and the year before, they'd even had a party. Desperate to see if anything was happening, Ness bolted down the stairs, but nobody else was there. Slowly walking towards the kitchen, Ness saw nothing except Samus checking the fridge for food. Walking to the main dining hall, Ness found the rest of the Smashers, but nobody seemed to be that excited to see him. He wondered if they were going to surprise him, but as the seconds ticked by, he got more and more anxious.

He had never considered that they would forget completely, especially as he told Lucas about it last week, and Lucas said he'd tell everyone and set up a huge celebration for him. After twiddling his thumbs for a few minutes, Ness perked up when he heard someone behind him saying,

"Hey Ness, I've got something for you."

Ness eagerly spun around, only to be handed a plate with a few rashers of bacon.

"Here, it's breakfast. I had to salvage all the food before Dedede and Donkey Kong got to it."

Meekly thanking Zelda for making him breakfast, Ness turned back to the table and looked around to see if he could spot any balloons, or wrapping paper, or anything that would give him the sign that they'd remembered his birthday. Eventually, he spotted Lucas with something that looked like a ribbon, so his hope rekindled and he got off his chair to investigate. Even though in the back of his head he knew it was probably nothing, he wanted to know that somebody had remembered.

Turning the corner, Ness was amazed when his hunch was right, and he saw Lucas wrapping a present. Trying to keep calm, Ness cautiously said,

"Hey Lucas, what are you doing?"

Lucas looked shocked, but calmed down when he saw it was Ness.

"Phew, it's only you. For a second, I thought it was Nana."

"Why?"

"Haven't you heard? It's her birthday in a week. We always make a big fuss of birthdays here."

Ness' jaw dropped. He couldn't figure out whether Lucas was being sarcastic and ironic, or whether he had genuinely forgotten. He was sure a moment ago that his best friend wouldn't forget, and that any second now, he would turn to Ness and say 'Gotcha!' before starting a party, but it really looked as though he had forgotten.

Slowly backing away, Ness eventually stammered out, "I'll see you later," to see if it would provoke any reaction, but Lucas just nodded absentmindedly and went back to wrapping the present. Ness backed out of the room, dreading the thought that everyone had forgotten. Taking a few deep breaths, he tried to calm himself down.

'Relax,' he thought, 'Just because one or two people have forgotten doesn't mean everyone has, right?'

'Right??'

Ness' day just got worse from there. People didn't seem to remember, and those who were vaguely aware of some event quickly remembered something else. On one occasion, it was King Dedede remembering that he had a fight coming up against Link, but the worst occasion was Captain Falcon.

"Er, Captain Falcon, you wouldn't happen to know what day it is, would you?"

Ness was cringing at how obviously he was hinting, but Captain Falcon was oblivious.

"It's Tuesday, isn't it?"

Ness let off a loud sigh and muttered, "Yes, but don't you remember something special today?"

Captain Falcon looked deep in thought for a second before gasping and turning to Ness.

"Oh man, thanks for reminding me! I have to meet Samus in the garden in a few minutes!"

As Ness felt even lower, Captain Falcon ran towards the door, then stopped before looking back for a split second.

"Ness?"

Ness didn't bother getting his hopes up as he quietly replied, "What?"

"I was supposed to wash the Blue Falcon now, but you just reminded me about Samus. Will you wash it, or are you busy?"

Ness' gut reaction was to think of a reason, but as he realised he didn't have anything else to do, he reluctantly accepted the job and vaguely heard Captain Falcon saying thanks as he ran off. Heading slowly to the garage, Ness wondered if he should just give up hoping and tell people it was his birthday rather than expecting them to know, but he decided against it. Entering the garage, he saw Olimar's small rocket, Samus' big starship, and then the huge Blue Falcon. Groaning loudly, Ness had to stand on Falco's Arwing just to reach up and climb onto Captain Falcon's vehicle.

Many hours later, Ness slid down the side of the Blue Falcon and stumbled off, feeling as miserable as ever. Out of all the things he'd wanted to spend his birthday doing, cleaning a car more than 20 times his size wasn't one of them. Stepping out of the garage, he could see from a nearby window that it was already past evening. Feeling hungry, he wandered into the kitchen to see if there was anything to eat. Seeing nothing immediately, he went to the bottom shelf, where he always kept a spare packet of sweets for when he was really hungry. Unfortunately, all he found was a small note saying 'IOU 1 packet of sweets, signed Donkey Kong.'

Groaning again, Ness walked into the main hall, where most of the Smashers were chatting idly. Only Kirby noticed Ness, and aside from waving for a second, he didn't do anything about it. Ness looked around the room for a second, seeing all of his friends, and not one of them who remembered his birthday. Sighing, Ness decided to give up on the idea of having a happy birthday and trudged up to his bedroom. Feeling too depressed to even get changed, he slumped onto his bed and waited for sleep to come and take him to the next day.

…

A few minutes later, Ness heard a small spark, then a loud groan from downstairs. He was too sleepy to care, but soon heard people calling from downstairs. He yawned and pushed himself off the bed, noticing as he stepped out into the corridor that every light was off. Probably a power cut. As Ness carefully walked down the stairs, he heard the other Smashers in the hall, still calling his name. Wandering inside, he could vaguely make out the shapes of the Smashers in the dark, as he recognised Samus' voice asking him,

"Ness, there's a bunch of candles on the table. Could you light them for us so that we can see again?"

Ness responded by whispering 'PK Fire' and setting one candle alight, then picking it up and slowly using it to light the other candles too. He was about to turn around when he noticed something. The candles were in a square, and in the middle of the square he suddenly noticed a cake. A cake with three words on it.

"Happy Birthday Ness!"

Ness didn't have to read the words, as suddenly the lights came back on, and the Smashers all yelled the message. Ness was overwhelmed. He turned back to see the Smashers, only to be greeted by a huge pile of presents. Feeling as if he was about to faint, Ness scouted the room and saw every Smasher with a smile on their face, wishing him a happy birthday. Before he could even wish them thanks, they took a deep breath and started singing.

"Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Ness, Happy Birthday to you!"

Ness had never been happier than this. He couldn't imagine how he had ever believed that his friends would forget his birthday and leave him sad.

The good thing about his sadness was that it always ended eventually.

Ness put on his biggest smile and ran towards his presents. This was his dream party.

Dream party…

…

Ness shuddered and awoke. Within seconds, his face fell as he realised that he had just been dreaming. Running to his door, he could still hear the other Smashers talking in the hall. They really had forgotten. Finally letting a few tears roll down his face, Ness slowly walked back to his bed and silently wished that he would forget this day as soon as possible.

Nobody had remembered his big day.

The bad thing about his sadness was that he never knew when it was coming back.


	3. Craziness

Hey…

I'm Ness. I can tell from your badge that you're Dr Stone. I don't really think that talking about this will work, but I'm willing to try anything. I just want this to stop… The Smashers have probably told you about me. I still think I don't really need a psychiatrist like you, but, I don't really know what I need right now. All I know is that something's wrong. I'd better start near the beginning.

When I was just 1 year old, nearly 2, there was an earthquake where I lived. It was a very strange earthquake, and although I barely remember it, people talked about it for years to come. It was one of the mysteries of our town. The earthquake had been felt everywhere, all over the world, but nobody could find out exactly where it was. The Richter scales were going crazy everywhere, but nobody could find out exactly what had happened. People searched for days, some dedicated their life to it. It was only after my adventure that I realised it was me.

I guess I should be thankful. The earthquake didn't destroy any buildings or kill anyone, so I was lucky that way. It was only when I was nearly 12, and I had been tasked with saving the world from Giygas that I caused it. Some people don't know all the details, but when I fought him, my body wasn't. My soul, and the souls of my friends had to be transported to machine. Giygas had manipulated the timeline, and was attacking the world from 10 years in the past. I had to go back to stop him, but my body would have been destroyed. Again, I was very lucky. When we defeated him, my soul was in 2 places at once. It was at my house in Onett, while I played with my dog, and it was in the cave to the past, where I was stopping Giygas once and for all.

There was no guarantee that my soul would get back to the right time, and I knew that, but I thought that one life, well, four lives, I'm forgetting Paula, Jeff, and Poo, were at stake. Some people called it heroic, but I think anyone would have made the same choice. Anyway, we were all ridiculously lucky. We all made it back to our proper time, souls intact, and the world safe. A few scientists did a few studies about me, wanting to discover more about the effects of time travel on a person, but most of their theories were never continued. All they said for sure was that it wasn't healthy. That's why the mayor of Onett ordered the last Phase Distorter to be deconstructed, so that nobody could ever do it again.

But I had done it, and nothing could stop that. I suppose I could have gone back in time and stopped myself from going back in time, but then the world would be gone. At the time, I didn't even care, I was just happy to be back with my friends in one piece. Now, things are beginning to catch up with me.

It's Giygas.

I killed him, I know I did, but the thought of him… it's still there, in the back of my head. Only me and my friends experienced seeing Giygas, hearing him, and defeating him, and I can tell you from experience, that it's worse than every nightmare you will ever have. Giygas had a way of making you doubtful, making you lose hope, making you want to give up. We were lucky that we didn't.

Then, last time I went back to Eagleland during my holidays, I met up with the old gang. Paula, Jeff, Poo, everyone was there. It was so fun to catch up with them, but something seemed wrong. Jeff was the one who sparked the question. When Poo and Paula were playing a game, he pulled me aside and nervously asked me something.

"Ness, do you ever… hear Giygas? His voice?"

I didn't know what to say, but I saw something in Jeff that day. Something I hadn't seen during all our adventures. Fear. Jeff was afraid. Petrified. He excused himself early that day. A few days later, he went missing. His friend Tony found a note at Snow Wood Boarding School. Jeff was a star student there. The note didn't explain much, it just said that Jeff was scared that he was hearing Giygas, and he was terrified that the voice might make him do things, so he left. He said he didn't trust himself around other humans, so he ran away. We searched for him for days, but never found him. I don't know why he did it, but there are only two possibilities. He was either crazy, or smart. We'll never know which.

Poo was the next to go. Rather than run away, he simply admitted himself into a mental asylum. I visited him once, and he looked exactly the same. He sounded the same too, he just said that he wanted somewhere quiet to meditate, and try and beat the voice that was talking to him. The voice of Giygas had struck again, and although Poo said that if he ever found a way to get rid of the voice, he'd be out in a flash, we both knew that he wouldn't be coming out. Giygas had taken two of my friends. I knew he'd save the worst for Paula.

Paula was amazing. It was her prayers during the battle against Giygas that gathered the power of the people of Earth. She had psychic powers much more advanced than mine. I admired her, and we both knew she had been a huge part of defeating Giygas. Maybe that's why he was much more wrathful to her. Giygas didn't make her run away or spend her life hiding. Giygas killed her.

Paula was a fighter. She put up with the voice for weeks, almost a month. It stopped her from hearing anyone else, and it stopped her from sleeping with it's incessant rambling, but she was dealing with it. Then, it spoke more deeply to her. She, like Jeff, left a note. Apparently, she broke down and realised that she didn't want to live with the voice for the rest of her life. Giygas' voice knew this, and it tried to get Paula to do things.

"One jump and everything will be over, you'll never hear me again!"

"Do it Paula, set yourself free…"

Like I said, Paula was very strong. She withstood the voice for a long time, but she couldn't hold out forever. One afternoon, she was walking down the street, probably trying to clear her head, when she just jumped suddenly, straight into the path of a car. The paramedics were quick, but we all knew they couldn't save her. She didn't want to be saved. No goodbye, no heroic farewell, she just decided to jump right then. I say she decided, but everyone knew that she didn't. Giygas did.

Now, I'm the only one left. The other Smashers heard about my friends, and they were all very comforting, but I was more worried than sad. Giygas had killed my friends, and I was the last one left. On the one hand, I'm not too scared. Once I die, everyone will be free of Giygas. Hell, for a few months, I thought the cycle had ended. I hadn't heard a voice, I was still fighting in the tournaments, but then, he came. So suddenly, that I barely knew what had happened.

It was about a fortnight ago. I'd just finished the match with Samus, and I'd won thanks to a stray bob-omb. I'd forgotten all about Giygas, and as I exited the hall where the other competitors had been watching, I heard a few compliments.

"Good match Ness!"

"Well played!"

"_It hurts Ness, it hurts."_

I spun around. Everyone was back to idly chatting, but I wasn't going to just walk away.

"Who said that? Who said 'it hurts'?"

Nobody answered. Somebody coughed, but I wasn't going to let the matter drop.

"DAMN IT, WHO SAID THAT?"

This time, people flinched at my voice. I was beginning to scare them. I was beginning to scare myself. I ran from the hall to my bedroom before anyone could try and talk to me. I tried to calm myself down by repeating things to myself, but it wasn't working.

"You just imagined it… Giygas is dead… You killed him…"

Slowly, I got up and walked over to the mirror. I wanted to see if anything was different, and it was. Looking at my reflection, I could see something in my eyes. The same thing I'd seen in Jeff. Absolute fear. Just as I was backing away, I heard it again.

"_I'm so sad, Ness…"_

I screamed. A few people knocked at my door, but I couldn't let them in. I tried to focus my psychic energy on cleaning my mind, but it was getting harder to concentrate. It was taking up all of my strength, and I wasn't even getting rid of Giygas' voice, I was just delaying it.

Every day, the voice got louder. I began to hear other things that weren't there. Sometimes, when there was silence, I could hear breathing. Not myself breathing, but Giygas breathing in the back of my head. It was an awful, hollow sound, as if he was sucking out all good memories I'd ever had.

I couldn't hear when other people were talking to me. I was too distracted to fight now, and as a result, Master Hand threatened to evict me. If it weren't for the other Smashers persuading him to let me stay until I was better, I'd be like Jeff right now. Living in the wilderness, trying to escape from my own imagination.

Then one day, I heard them again. The other Smashers talked to me, and I heard them. Giygas' voice wasn't interrupting them, but I know why. He hates me the most. I'm not going to die, or run away. I'm going to spend the rest of my life in fear of him coming back, and the voice knows it. Sometimes, just when I think it's gone, it whispers to me at night.

"_Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness."_

I've tried to kill myself, but the voice stops me. I know what it's doing. It's forcing me to live the rest of my life waiting for him to strike. I want to fight back, but I don't know how. Nobody else knows how Giygas works but me, and I have no idea how to stop him. Out of the chosen four who beat him before, only me and Poo remain.

One of the four has heard the voice, one of the four has fled.

One of the four has heard the voice, he hides himself instead.

One of the four has heard the voice, one of the four is dead.

One of the four will live his life with the voice in the back of his head.

I know it's not likely, but maybe, just maybe, I'll eventually find a way to beat the voice. I have the rest of my life to try, and I'm sure Poo will be of some use. Together, we might be able to get rid of him forever, someday. It's the only thought that keeps me getting up every day and trying to live my life.

After all, it's not like I'm really crazy, am I?

…

…

Am I?


	4. Madness

_A young girl of 9 years named Tracy was walking through the streets of Onett at night with her big brother's dog, King. She hadn't seen her brother in a few months, because of the tournament he was attending, but she still wrote to him occasionally, and he wrote back. She was jolted out of her thoughts by King barking. Sighing, she turned her attention back to walking the dog._

_A few minutes later, she thought she'd come far enough, so she turned back and started to walk back to her house. However, as she waited patiently to cross the road, a noise distracted her. In the distance, she could hear brakes squealing, but she couldn't see any cars. She sighed loudly, and remembered the problems the police had been having with boy racers. Seeing no cars down the street though, she decided to walk across the road. However, she had barely gotten halfway before the sound of brakes squealing distracted her again, and two cars hurtled around the corner towards her._

_Tracy screamed, but found herself paralyzed in fear. The two cars couldn't stop in time, and swerved wildly. Luckily, after a few seconds, Tracy started to run out of the way. However, her legs tangled in King's lead and she tripped and fell onto the ground. Frantically trying to push herself up, Tracy turned around just in time to see the side of one of the cars heading straight for her. She closed her eyes and ducked, but soon afterwards felt herself flying through the air after impact. After landing on the grass, everything went black._

...

"Mail's here!"

Captain Falcon staggered into the main hall, bringing with him a large sack of letters. Slamming it down on the table, the Smashers began to rummage through it. Once every month, they would get a new sack of letters, some from their family and friends, and some from their fans. Unsurprisingly, Link and Pit usually collected the most, whereas Ness himself would usually get under a dozen. He didn't mind though, as it made him feel more grateful to the people that did write.

"Here," muttered Mario, handing Ness all of the letters with him name on them. Ness smiled and opened the first few, but when he came to one, he stopped. It looked more official than a normal fan letter. To start with, it called him 'Mr Ness' and he recognised the address. It was the hospital branch in Onett.

Beginning to panic, he opened the envelope and read the letter. As he reached around halfway, his face fell, but before anyone noticed, he ran from the hall and up to his bedroom, slamming the door. Those who did notice assumed that he was leaving to train; after all, he had a match against Peach later on.

Ness didn't return until the first match of the day had begun. Walking slowly into the room, he was breathing heavily and obviously upset at something, but the Smashers were all too busy watching the match to notice. Ness swallowed his fear and took a seat next to Samus.

"Whose fighting?" he asked quietly, getting the response, "Fox and Zelda," from Samus.

Ness tried to calm down and enjoy the match but he groaned when he saw the arena. 'Port Town, Aero Dive'

Normally, this arena would have been fun to watch, but not for Ness. At first, the fight went smoothly, but then Fox kicked Zelda down onto the track just before the F-Zero cars raced past. Zelda gave a small scream in defeat as she was struck by them and flew out of the arena, meaning that Fox had won. However, as the rest of the Smashers applauded, Samus noticed something wrong with Ness. Instead of cheering, he had closed his eyes and was breathing deeply.

"Ness, are you ok?"

A startled Ness opened his eyes and stuttered back, "Yeah… I'm fine…"

As Zelda and Fox returned, Donkey Kong and Lucas went to start the next match. Ness tried to calm down again, but groaned again, this time louder, when he saw the next arena. Mario Circuit.

As Donkey Kong and Lucas landed on the figure-eight track, Samus noticed Ness turning away again. Tapping him on the shoulder, she asked if something was wrong again, but again he shook his head and shakily went back to watching the match. After a few minutes, a meteor smash from Donkey Kong sent Lucas down into the track, and he was struck by the racers, sending him out of the arena. Ness cringed loudly, prompting Samus to give him an awkward look once more.

After a few minutes, Ness had to try and block out his other thoughts, because now it was his time to fight. As he and Peach stepped into the portal to be transported to a mystery arena, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, but when he opened them, he was exactly where he didn't want to be.

Location: Onett.

Letting out an audible groan, some of the Smashers watching were wondering what Ness was doing, but they quickly became more interested in the fight. Peach quickly jumped towards Ness and aimed a smack at him, while he rolled out of the way quickly and swung at her with a baseball bat. The roar of a passing car distracted Ness as he ducked and shivered, despite being safely on the roof. Peach was bemused, but took advantage of this to aim a kick at Ness while he was low on the roof.

Ness took the hit and flew backwards, but recovered in mid air and screamed 'PK Fire' to shock Peach into taking a few steps backwards. Unfortunately, she was on the end of the roof. Letting out a startled scream as she fell, she hit the ground hard and gasped for breath. She heard the beep of an approaching car, and tried to jump up, but found herself stunned by a 'PK Thunder' long enough to paralyze her to the ground.

As Ness saw the car approaching Peach, he screamed. Now the audience knew that something was wrong. Ness jumped down to Peach and tried to pull her out of the way, but the skidding car caught her feet and she found herself flying out of the arena. Ness didn't know whether it was Peach's blond hair, like Tracy's, or the reckless skidding car, but all of a sudden, what he had read earlier hit him, and he had to let something out.

Peach wandered, dazed, out of the portal back to the main hall, only to find the Smashers still staring at the screen.

"What is he doing?"

"He's getting his baseball bat!"

"Why isn't he coming back?"

The audience had no idea what Ness was planning, but when Samus looked closely, she could see something in his eyes, a mixture of sadness and madness. She was still wondering what he would do, but when the audience heard the beep of the oncoming car, they saw Ness pull back his baseball bat and prepare to swing. They leaned forward slowly, but jumped back quickly when Ness let out an angry scream and swung his baseball bat as hard as he could, just as a car passed. The bat smashed straight into the car's body, and it span for a few metres before coming to a stop.

The Smashers thought Ness might be finished now, but as another beep was heard, he pulled his baseball bat back again. By now, they knew what would happen as he swung again, violently smashing the windscreen of this car as it passed, sending it crashing into the wall of a tunnel. As Ness charged up another swing, the Smashers realised they had to take action.

"What's the matter with him?"

"What the heck is he doing?"

"I'm going in."

The last response made the audience turn around to see Samus heading into the portal in her Zero Suit. Although Samus seemed isolated at time, she considered the other competitors some of her closest friends, and had got to know them well. Now, she wanted to find out what was making Ness go mad like this.

Samus landed agilely in Onett on a rooftop moments before Ness lashed out at another car. Calmly walking up behind him, she addressed him in an equally calm tone.

"Hello, Ness."

Ness ignored her and whacked another car as hard as he could, knocking a tire out and making sparks fly across the pavement as the car skidded to a halt.

"Ness, what are you doing?"

Ness stayed silent, preparing his next strike, but Samus could see him up close now, and she saw grief, waiting to be let out.

"Ness, these are innocent people."

Samus was saying bolder statements, but keeping her calm tone. Ness had ignored her up to now, but he let off a small growl before replying.

"These people are not," he began as he charged up another attack, "innocent. These people are bastards!"

Some of the Smashers were shocked to hear Ness using such language, but Samus kept a cool face.

"Ness, what did they do?"

By now, some of the drivers had gotten out of the car and were angrily screaming at Ness, but he and Samus ignored them.

"Ness, tell me what they did."

Ness ignored her again, but his face was falling. His rage was gradually wearing down and his swings were becoming weaker. His last hit barely dented the side of a car before it had to slow down to avoid the huge pile-up he had already caused.

"No," was all he said.

Samus sighed and unfolded the letter Ness had absentmindedly left on his chair. It immediately got Ness' attention, but it didn't distract him enough to stop him from attacking more passing cars. After a minute of awkward silence, Samus folded the letter back up and dropped it next to Ness.

"Ness, I'm sorry to hear about your little sister."

The mention of Tracy stirred up anger in Ness again, and he swung even more ferociously at the next car, smashing it's headlights and sending glass across the ground.

"Ness, this isn't the way you should deal with it. You're just making things worse."

Samus' words were having an effect on Ness as angry tears began to stream down his face while he tried to attack more vehicles with his rapidly decreasing energy.

"Ness, this isn't going to help Tracy to recover."

Ness paused for a second, then angrily threw his baseball bat away and collapsed in tears. Luckily, Samus was there to kneel down next to him and give him a hug. He rested his head on her shoulders as he slowly whispered out,

"She was hurt… and I wasn't there…"

More tears escaped Ness as Samus kept comforting him, patting him on the back and telling him it was ok. The angry drivers were slowly backing away as Ness' wails grew louder, but eventually, he started to calm down. It could have been a matter of minutes or hours, but Samus didn't mind, as long as she would help her friend through until he was feeling better. Gradually, his breakdown became nothing more than a small sniffle.

As Ness was getting calmer, Samus lifted up his head so he was facing her and whispered, "Do you want to go and see Tracy?"

Ness thought for a second, then nodded, only for Samus to quietly reply "Ok then," and take his hand, walking him to Onett Hospital. There, they sat in the waiting room for a few minutes, rather Ness sat in the waiting room while Samus talked to a receptionist, and before too long, Ness found himself slowly entering the room where his little sister was.

Nervously stepping up to the hospital bed, Ness tried to crack a smile. He knew that Tracy was well enough to hear him, but some apparatus over her mouth prevented her from speaking.

"Hey Tracy…"

Tracy looked up and smiled when she heard her big brother's voice, before she lay back down in bed and waited for him to walk to her side. When he did, she gave off a bigger smile.

"I'm sorry about what happened… I got the letter about it today…"

Ness couldn't help but smile when he saw that his sister was ok, and he became more positive and confident in speaking to her.

"If you like, I'll come visit here more often while you're here. It's pretty handy having a portal above the town center."

Tracy nodded at Ness' suggestion, leaned her head to one side and smiled at Ness more. He just seemed to be relieved that she was ok, but he decided it was best not to keep Samus waiting too long.

"Well, I'd better go, some of the other competitors are here. I'll see you tomorrow."

Tracy raised a weak arm and waved towards Ness as he walked to the door, until he turned around, cheekily grinned, and muttered, "I'll bring my yoyo."

As Ness left the room, he found Samus reading a magazine in the waiting room. A few people were staring at her, as she looked a lot more different that other citizens of Onett, but she didn't seem to mind. As she saw Ness approaching, she put down the magazine and said, in the same calm voice,

"Ready to go?"

Ness nodded silently and took Samus' hand, walking back out to the drugstore of Onett. Some of the cars were being towed away, and Ness began to feel guilty.

"Samus, I didn't hurt anyone, did I?"

Samus shook her head. "Don't worry, it's all taken care of." Ness later found out that the other Smashers paid the bill for the damage as a sign of their sympathy for him.

"Samus?"

"Yes?"

"Thanks."

"No problem."

Ness smiled as he and Samus headed back to the main hall, knowing that even when he went a little mad, he had friends who cared about him.


	5. Weakness

Ness gritted his teeth as he entered his battle against Link. Link was always a tough foe in combat, and Ness had never beaten him, but few other competitors had either. One good thing about battles against Link was that Link genuinely liked a good challenge, and didn't get annoyed when other people beat him; in fact, he often gave advice to others on how to score more hits on him.

As Ness appeared on the arena, he saw that it was Final Destination.

'Great,' he thought, 'Now I can concentrate on the fighting.'

Ness started well by jumping into the air and pulling out his yoyo as he landed near Link, ready to hit him with it, but Link bashed Ness with his shield before he could move. Stumbling back, Ness recovered well and shouted 'PK Fire', but Link rolled backwards, out of harm's way. However, as he stood up, Ness, who had jumped over him, grabbed him and threw him off the edge. Hoping for a quick victory, Ness waited by the edge and when Link was close, jumped into the air again, hoping to kick him down, but Link swirled his sword around furiously, disrupting Ness and making his way back onto the stage.

Ness landed awkwardly and charged back, but Link was on the defensive. Eventually, a well placed sword forced Ness back, and Link muttered, "Boomerang!" Ness quickly prepared himself to defend against Link's boomerang, but found himself hit with an arrow, followed by a bomb, followed by a charging slash which knocked him off the stage. He couldn't recover in time and fell to end the match.

As Link and Ness re-entered the main hall, Ness felt Link's hand on his shoulder.

"Ness, you're improving, but I still caught you out at the end."

Ness looked at his feet and began to wish that Link wouldn't do this.

"Ness, when you're in battle, people can say things to try and trick you. Just try to shut out their voices and concentrate on their actions."

Ness was about to ask a question, but Link went on.

"In fact, you could try it yourself. Train yourself so that when you scream 'PK Fire', you could do a PK Thunder instead, or the other way around."

Link took his hand from Ness' shoulder and began to leave, turning around quickly to say, "Don't worry, we all have our weaknesses, we just have to try not to let them get the better of us."

Ness decided to take Link's words to heart and train later, but for now, he wanted to relax. Making his way into the living room, he came across a vacant sofa and leapt across it. Sighing on relief when he felt how comfortable the sofa was, he heard a chirpy, "Move up, please," as somebody sat down next to him. Sitting up again, Ness saw that Zelda was sitting next to him, but she looked engrossed in a book. Ness leant back again into the sofa, then heard conversation behind him as Peach was talking to Ike.

"Please?"

"No, your legs work just as well as mine, just get it yourself for a change."

"But Ike, you're so much stronger than me. Surely this should be no challenge for a brave fighter like you!"

"Peach, I'm going."

Ness heard Ike getting up and leaving the room, but he didn't think much of it. Right now, he was too comfortable to care about it, and it wasn't until he heard a small cough in front of him that he bothered to open his eyes. Peach was standing before him, with a sweet smile on her face.

"Ness, can I ask you a favour?"

Ness took a second to think about what was more important, helping a friend, or a really, really comfortable seat, and eventually decided to do her favour.

"Sure."

"Thanks, could you run to the kitchen and get me a soda? Please?"

Ness looked doubtful, "Why can't you go?"

Peach leaned over, making Ness blush as her dress began to move down, exposing some of her 'assets'.

"Please Ness, I'm just so tired, and I need a strong pair of arms like your's. Can't you help me?"

Ness blushed more as he wondered whether Peach knew how loose her dress was, before muttering 'Yes' and wandering off to the kitchen to get a soda.

Picking a fresh one out of the fridge, he was walking back to the living room until he tripped over his shoelaces, making the can of soda roll along the ground. Running to catch up with it, he caught it next to the living room, and decided to wait until it calmed down for a while before taking it back to Peach. After all, he didn't want it to blow up in her face. It was then that he overheard Zelda.

"You do realise you're being mean here."

Apparently, she was talking to Peach, who used her sweet voice to reply, sounding shocked and hurt.

"Why, Zelda, whatever could you mean?"

"Making Ness get you that soda. He's only a child, you know you're just teasing him."

"He's not a child, he's 16, and are you suggesting I forced him to get me that soda?"

"Actually, yes."

Peach let out an audible gasp.

"How did I force him?"

"He asked you why you couldn't get it-"

"And I answered him!"

"No you didn't, you just leant over and let your breasts do the talking."

Peach let out a louder gasp and sounded infuriated.

"Zelda! How dare you question my decency as a woman, especially as a fellow princess!"

However, Zelda kept her calm tone and replied,

"How dare you degrade yourself to a child just to get him to run your errands!"

There was silence for a second, and Ness thought that Peach was about to slap Zelda, before he heard her responding.

"Ness is 16 years old, he's practically an adult now, and if he wants to help out a friend by getting them something, I see nothing wrong with it. I don't know what you're problem is Zelda, but just keep your opinions to yourself."

"You're almost twice his age…"

There was a loud slapping sound and Ness jolted up, wondering whether or not he should peek round the door.

"I'm only 26, you rude, rude girl!"

"Fine, you're only 10 years older than him, but that's still too much! It's just cruel to watch you using your looks to try and manipulate your friends, and it'll come back to bite you in the end!"

With that, Zelda stormed out of the room holding her book, not spotting a wide-eyed Ness against the wall. Ness nervously stepped into the room, holding the now still can of soda.

"Um, Peach? I got the soda…"

Peach jumped a little to see Ness there, but grabbed the soda quickly, before making an over-exaggerated show of thanking him.

"Oh Ness, how delightful of you," she started, picking him up and hugging him tightly, making him blush even more. "It's nice to have a friend like you who helps out other people," she screamed at the door, making sure that Zelda would hear.

From then onwards, things got worse for Ness. At meal times, Peach would ask him to fetch her drinks, and whenever they were in the same room, she would ask him to bring her things, magazines, make up, anything she wanted. Ness rarely questioned her, but whenever he did, he would receive an answer that would immediately make him want to help her.

"Ness, could you open the window for me?"

"Why?"

Peach sighed, "It's just so hot in here. My clothes were boiling on the radiator this morning. My bra was so hot, I couldn't even put it on…"

Ness' eyes went wide and he started to sweat.

"I hope nobody notices," muttered Peach, puffing her chest out and looking down at it. "Ness, is it noticeable?"

Ness stuttered something incoherent and went to open the window as Peach had asked. As he sat down again, Peach pulled him next to her and, surprisingly for Ness, hugged him.

"Oh Ness, I'm so lucky to have a friend like you."

For a second, Ness thought that Peach meant it, before he noticed that Zelda was walking past the doorway. She scowled at Peach, who scowled back, and then kept walking. As soon as Zelda was gone, Peach dropped Ness back on the couch and went back to reading the magazine that he had fetched for her.

Ness was so busy being Peach's servant, or as she called it 'cute little helper' that he barely had time to prepare for his next fight against Fox. Feeling tired by running all of Peach's chores, he couldn't find much energy to fight back, and was knocked out fairly quickly. When he emerged back in the hall, he heard a voice calling his name, but instead of Peach, it was Link.

"Ness, you looked tired. Did you practise any of the techniques I told you about?"

Ness scratched his back and kept quiet until he heard Link sigh, and he muttered, "Sorry…"

"Don't be, you don't have to practise all the time. Just remember what I said."

As Link patted Ness on the shoulder again and walked off, his words stayed in Ness' head.

…

"_People can say things to try and trick you. Just shut out their voices and concentrate on their actions."_

"_Don't worry, we all have our weaknesses, we just have to try not to let them get the better of us."_

…

Ness walked into the dining room. Peach was sitting there, waiting for dinner, while Zelda was on the other side of the table chatting to Link, and a few other Smashers were just hanging out there too. Ness decided to sit next to Zelda, and she immediately said to him,

"Link just told me about your battle. Are you going to practise?"

Ness took a deep breath and replied, "I think I'm about to…"

Zelda and Link didn't understand, but Peach interrupted the conversation.

"Ness sweetheart, do you think you could get me another soda?"

Ness sighed, looked at his feet, and then muttered, "Sure," as he left to get one. Before he left, he could see Peach smiling slyly at Zelda.

When he returned, he was carrying a huge bottle, and with great difficulty, he heaved it into the table.

"Sorry, but we're all out of the small bottles right now."

"Oh, that's ok, thank you Ness."

Peach made sure that Zelda was watching, then leant over and kissed Ness on the cheek, leaving a giant red lipstick imprint there. Ness blushed and staggered back to his seat next to Zelda, who gave him a pitying look and began to talk to him.

"Ness, you shouldn't let her-"

"Shhh, I just did my practise."

"What do you mean?"

"We're not out of small bottles."

Trying to suppress a smile, he watched as Peach began to open the huge bottle, unaware of how furiously Ness had been shaking it.

The moment it became undone, the soda shot out at Peach, spraying her in the face. She screamed as she staggered backwards, dropping the bottle as it continued to point at her, covering her body in sticky soda. Forced to take a few steps back, Peach slipped on the wet floor and landed on her back, still being shot with soda. Eventually, it stopped, and as Peach looked up, she saw Zelda with a big smile on her face and Link with a shocked expression.

"NESS! Did you shake that up!?" Peach demanded.

"I don't know, I guess I must have," replied Ness innocently, before adding, "Should I get you some tissues to clean up?"

Peach thought for a moment, then shouted back, "No! I can't trust you any more, I swear I can only depend on myself around here," before storming out, muttering, "If you want something done well, you have to do it yourself…"

Ness turned back to Zelda and Link with a smirk on his face as Zelda patted him on the back.

"Well done Ness, this calls for celebration. How about getting me and Link some soda to celebrate?"

Ness was about to say yes when he realised what Zelda was doing, and slowly turned to Zelda, still grinning, before replying,

"Get it yourself."


	6. Kindness

-This chapter is dedicated to Child at Heart Forever for being a faithful reviewer, fellow Ness lover, and overall, being a funky, funky person. Have a great 2009!-

Ness stared intently at the chess board. He'd never expected that the Smashers would ever become so interested in such a simple game, but he felt strangely nervous with so many eyes watching him. The entire population of Smash Palace were watching him, and the only consolation was that the nerves were clearly getting to his opponent as well. Zelda wiped the sweat from her forehead with shaking hands and focused on her next move, but it was tough knowing that all of her friends, and some enemies, were watching.

Ness had never intended for this to happen, but one day, Lucas had been playing a strange looking game with lots of pieces, and it had piqued Ness' interests.

"What's that?"

"It's chess. Want a game?"

"Sure… so how does it work?"

Lucas seemed surprised that Ness had never played chess, and worried that the rules might be too much for him to handle. Luckily, Ness seemed to pick up pretty quickly, looking at the different pieces with wonder as Lucas explained things.

"That's the rook, it can go horizontally or vertically… and that's the bishop, it goes diagonally…"

Ness listened to the rules, occasionally asking Lucas to repeat something, before their game finally got underway. However, after only 5 minutes, Ness appeared to have Lucas in checkmate.

"Wow, that's pretty good. Are you sure you've never played before?"

"Yeah. I guess I must be a natural at this…"

From Lucas, Ness went on to beat the Ice Climbers and then Toon Link. Then, challenging some older Smashers, Ness beat Luigi, Diddy Kong, Fox, and Link. By now, he'd gained an unbeaten run of 7 games, and it was clear to everyone that he was pretty good. However, they assumed it was luck, until he beat Lucario. Then, even the veteran Smashers became interested. They knew Ness was psychic, but they didn't realise how smart he was.

Ness' psychic powers came in handy. If he focused really hard, he could see a brief vision of what the board would look like in a few minutes. If it looked bad, Ness would try to see how he would go wrong and avoid it. It made the game easier, but still required a huge amount of skill and perseverance. Ness constantly thought out every possibility, every option he had, and every move his opponent could make.

Zelda was the only other Smasher who frequently played chess. Being the holder of the Triforce of Wisdom didn't give her a large amount of power or strength, but she still excelled in intelligence, and games like chess gave her an opportunity to show that she was more than just a pretty face. She had never been beaten, and for this reason she was generally regarded as the smartest Smasher there. Hence why now, the entire populace of Smash Palace were watching her intently as she anxiously picked up her Queen and made it retreat a few steps.

Ness was getting more and more nervous, but he smiled as he saw a chance. However, as he went to move, he was interrupted. Bowser had tried to move to get a better view of the game, nudging Ganondorf, who bumped into Peach, who toppled over and screamed, distracting the players and audience as she landed near the foot of a grandfather clock. With an awkward creak, the tall clock leaned forwards and fell towards Ness, who yelled and tried to dive out of the way, but couldn't avoid being struck on the head and briefly blacking out.

…

"Urgh…"

Ness sat up groggily, to see the Smashers staring at him. Feeling alarmed for a second, he calmed down when he heard Samus.

"You ok?"

"I've been better," groaned out Ness, "But I don't think I'm injured."

"You don't appear to have any head injuries. Feel up to finishing the game?"

"Er… sure."

Ness got back onto his seat and tried to remember which chance he'd just seen. Remembering, he smiled again while moving his bishop into a threatening position.

"Check."

Zelda also smiled, and took Ness' bishop with her Queen. However, she noticed too late that she had left herself open to attack. Ness moved one of his pawns forwards. Now Zelda's Queen was trapped. Seeing that there was no chance for her Queen to escape, Zelda decided to go down fighting and took out another pawn with her Queen before waiting for Ness to kill it.

Ness surprised everyone by ignoring Zelda's Queen and moving his rook instead.

"Check."

Zelda hurriedly moved her King out of the way, only for Ness to move his remaining bishop.

"Check."

Zelda began to panic as she scanned the board, seeing only one place for her King to move. Unfortunately, as soon as she moved, Ness grabbed his knight and placed it just where Zelda didn't want it.

"Checkmate."

There was a stunned silence before Ness got a small round of applause from the Smashers. Blushing and feeling proud, he offered to shake hands with Zelda, and she took his hand, albeit somewhat deflated.

"Good game," Ness chirped.

"Yes, quite…" muttered Zelda, without nearly as much enthusiasm. Before Ness could continue, Zelda excused herself and left the room, leaving Ness to be complimented. Some people just said, 'Not bad kid,' while others went a bit over the top. Falco went as far as calling Ness the smartest Smasher there, and Ness was feeling too flattered to deny it.

After the commotion died down, the Smashers went back to their everyday lives, and the next incident Ness thought was a little strange didn't happen until after dinner time. Zelda was on the sofa, reading a book, while Ness was watching TV. However, the scene was interrupted as the Pokemon Trainer ran into the room and sat down next to Ness.

"Ness, are you busy?"

"Not really. Why?"

Pokemon Trainer seemed nervous, but pressed on.

"We haven't really talked yet. My name's Red."

"Ok… nice to meet you, Red. What's the problem?"

"I have an upcoming Pokemon battle with my rival. Could I just run a battle plan past you and see what you think?"

Ness was a bit confused as to why Red would want his opinion of all people's, but agreed. Red brought up a few Pokemon, explained their strengths, and saw what Ness would think. It took Ness a while to grasp the situation, but when he understood, he felt confident enough to give advice.

"Well, you should try and mainly use Charizard since he has the strongest attacks, but exchange him with Ivysaur if you go up against a water Pokemon. You should really only use Squirtle if you're confident enough to think he can take out the enemy in a few hits. Still… I'm not an expert here. You should ask Zelda, she's smarter at these things than I am."

Zelda glanced up when she heard her name being mentioned, but after Red stayed silent for a few seconds, she went back to her book. Red ruffled Ness' cap and left, quickly thanking him for his help, leaving Ness curious. Just what had this chess win done for his reputation? For a split-second, Ness heard a sob coming from Zelda's direction, but when he looked towards the sofa, it had stopped, and her face was hidden behind her book once more. Ness considered asking her if anything was wrong, but didn't want to risk embarrassing her and left to the garden to relax, leaving Zelda in peace.

Once in the garden, Ness still couldn't find time to relax. Lucas wanted advice on his fighting techniques, and Mario wanted to know if Ness had any suggestions for what to get Peach for her birthday. Eventually, night fell, and Ness knew he could relax in the comfort of his own bedroom. Unfortunately, his room was next to Zelda's, and just as he was getting to sleep, he heard gentle sobbing coming through the wall. Hearing another voice, Ness curiously pressed his ear against the wall and listened.

"I know it was just a stupid game, but it was a stupid game that I was good at!"

"You're still good at it Zelda, Ness didn't change that." Ness recognised this voice as Link's.

"But still… it was something I was the best at. Having the Triforce of 'Wisdom' made me feel like I was smart."

"You still are, you're just overreacting. It's just a silly game."

"Then why are people treating me differently? Nobody asks me for help any more, they just go to Ness instead! I saw it with Red today, and I heard he's everyone's favourite agony aunt now. It's like nobody needs me any more."

"You know that's a lie. I need you, you know that."

"But we knew each other before the tournament. If nobody else needs me here, why should I stay?"

"Zelda, don't be ridiculous. You have lots of friends here."

"Think about it Link… I'm not that good at fighting, my only strength was my intelligence, and now Ness has replaced that… there's no use for me any more!"

"Zelda, please calm down-"

"I don't want to be here any more Link, I think it's best if I leave."

Ness tried to hear more, but he was almost deafened when he heard Zelda's door burst open. Although nobody emerged at first, Ness could hear Zelda frantically fighting off tears and packing her things quickly into bags, while Link begged her to stay. It wasn't until Ness actually heard Zelda storming through the corridors that he realised how serious the situation could be. Zelda could actually leave!

Ness ran out into the corridor, and saw that a few other Smashers had already heard the noise and wondered what was going on. Samus, Pit and Ganondorf were the first people there, but soon everyone was watching as Zelda walked to the front door of Smash Palace with her bags while Link's pleading became more desperate.

"Please Zelda, I need you, you can't leave!"

"There's no more reason for me to be here!"

The crowd fell silent, until Link's reply made them all gasp fearfully.

"If you leave, I'm coming with you."

Link's threat made Zelda pause at the door, but she didn't take it seriously.

"Link, you can't leave, you're one of the most famous fighters."

"I don't care. If you go, I go with you."

There was a pause as everyone waited for Zelda's reply, but Ganondorf broke the silence.

"If they go, I'm not sticking around. The only reason I came here is to fight them!"

"I won't stay either," interrupted Toon Link, "I don't want to be the only representative here!"

"Link's my best mate," Pit began, "I'm not staying if he goes."

"Me neither," muttered Samus, "If all my friends go, I go."

"I don't want to be the only woman here, I'll leave too!" added Peach.

Before Ness could stop, most of the Smashers were threatening to leave, and the conversation became a shouting match that Ness couldn't even understand. Unfortunately, Zelda made her voice heard above everyone else's.

"That's enough! I'm going!"

Before Link could reply, Zelda kicked the door open and walked out with her bags.

"Zelda!" Link cried, running out after her as some of the crowd joined him, and some stayed behind. Ness looked around, terrified. If he'd known that something as harmless as a game of chess could cause this much pain to his friend's, he never would have done it! Ness tried to run after Link, Zelda and the others and persuade them to come back, but suddenly, the world around him began to dissolve, and before he knew it, he felt his eyes closing.

…

"Ness, wake up!"

Ness groggily opened his eyes. Looking next to him and seeing the broken old grandfather clock, he looked up around him and saw the concerned faces of the Smashers.

"You ok?" Samus asked. Ness felt strangely relieved, but wanted to make sure he didn't repeat the same mistake. He quickly nodded, and waited for the question he knew would come.

"Feel up to finishing the game?"

Nodding again, Ness quickly took his seat. Thinking deeply, he wanted to look as though he had tried to win and lost, rather than just giving up. Moving his rook forwards, he muttered 'Check' as Zelda began to carry out the defensive plan Ness had seen her building up. Within minutes, he was shaking hands with her as she beamed with pride and chirped,

"Good game Ness. You're quite good at chess."

"Yeah, but you're the best."

Zelda blushed again, but the commotion soon ended and the Smashers wandered away. Ness smiled, safely knowing that he hadn't ended the tournament, and went to watch TV, but heard Zelda calling him back.

"Ness?"

"Yes?"

Zelda paused, and Ness saw something in her eyes. A mixture of fear and gratitude.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"I think you know what."

Ness was about to deny it, but their conversation was interrupted when the Pokemon Trainer rushed back into the room.

"Good, you're still here Zelda, I wanted to ask you about some Pokemon for an upcoming battle I have…"

Zelda smiled. "Ask away," she replied, sending her large smile Ness' way.

Ness began to smile as well when seeing that Zelda was ok, and left the room, confident that he wouldn't want to play chess again for a long time.


End file.
